On the surface, this album might appear more like an arduous university examination rather than a new pop project from an artist who just had a last hit featured a global K-pop icon. Split into four distinct movements and sung in thirteen tongues, we have a dizzying classical-tinged opus exploring feminine mystique, spiritual transcendence, and bodily change, frequently through the prism of various women saints. The dissolution of a love affair—a theme treated with grounded honesty on another major 2025 album—soars skyward here, carried by the lush sound of a full orchestra and input from an award-winning composer among a vast list of contributors. The pure daring alone makes the work of other artists seem rather modest.
Rising Above Scholarly Exercise
The fact that this album succeeds in escape overly academic posturing is almost a miracle, and full praise belonging to Rosalía. Although this is not her first album to fuse the past and the present, its stakes feel far greater on Lux, and the tightrope walk more dramatic. What really elevates her fourth album, outside of its complex melodies, dense compositions, and engrained drama, proves to be a core spirit of playfulness. Much like the legendary Björk at her height, you find a wondrous sense to the vocalist's singing that pulls the listener up in its tornado. Even when she is breaking hearts in two, you nevertheless want to be right there through the journey.
A Signature Moment of Joy
That exuberant spirit shines brightly during a stirring piano-led song about a saint. It bathes in a string-drenched melancholy for several moments. Then, all the music drops away, and there's a gleeful giggle and a declaration before a hilariously over-the-top string surge thuds in with comedic impact. The track immediately segues to the frenetic track featuring galloping orchestration, an imposing choral group, and a surprise appearance from the artist herself.
"The magic of this album lies in you rarely quite understand—nor wish to predict—what you will go next."
Nearly every track finishes in a completely different place than how it began. One moment explores the transient trappings of fame over a delicate orchestration only to collapsing into electronic cacophony. Another, a song echoing the artist's earlier rhythmic work begins off moody and sinister, featuring menacing beats, before sudden traditional rhythms and an angelic chorus arrive to smooth its jagged corners.
The Bridge Between Experiment & Pop
A key balancing act on Lux is navigating the gap between bold experimentation and broad accessibility. This is little surprise that it has achieved the artist's first release to break into the upper reaches of key charts: at its core a suite of truly catchy pop songs. A song sung entirely in the English language swells around a refrain that seems to collect more and more nagging hooks while it spirals upward. This feat is echoed by another powerful track that expands and contracts, intertwining multiple melodies like a complex weave.
- A waltz-like number charms with its playful, Disney-adjacent flair and a chant-along chorus.
- In its words, it aligns with pop culture honesty of other breakup songs, lambasting a former lover described as an "emotional bully".
- Across the album, the singing carry a sharp smile, akin to a storybook character concealing a blade: "Top prize in being a scoundrel / You've the podium of letdown."
An Opulent Banquet for the Soul
This album represents pop on a maximalist scale, a hungry grasp for high artistry in an era of looming AI-generated sameness. It eschews self-absorption for sublime transcendence, crafting a dramatic spectacle that skillfully controls its own inherent excess. It is an abundant source of hidden treasure that requires patience to fully explore but doesn't seem like a chore. Where some major pop albums of the year felt like a meager scraps, this record offers a lavish banquet at which the guests at it, some tipsy on holy wine, flit from discussions about ancient figures, the profound sensation of heartbreaking grief, and shared stories about useless partners. In essence, it's a contemporary theatrical production from pop's most restlessly inventive visionary.
